George Busbee

George Dekle Busbee Sr. (7 August 1927-16 July 2004) was Governor of Georgia (D) from 14 January 1975 to 11 January 1983, succeeding Jimmy Carter and preceding Joe Frank Harris.

Biography
George Busbee was born in Vienna, Georgia on 7 August 1927, and he attended Georgia Military College and Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College before serving in the US Navy. In 1952, he earned his law degree from the University of Georgia, and he served nine terms in the State House of Representatives as a Democratic Party member after working as an Albany, Georgia lawyer. In 1967, Busbee endorsed Republican Party member Bo Callaway as the gubernatorial candidate instead of the segregationist Lester Maddox, and he defeated Maddox in the gubernatorial primary that followed Jimmy Carter's exit from office in 1975. Busbee amended the state constitution to allow for governors to serve two consecutive four-year terms in office, and he served as a senior partner at the King & Spalding law firm after leaving office. He died of a heart attack at the Savannah International Airport in 2004.